1. Field of the Invention.
The present invention relates to casino games, and more particularly, but not by way of limitation, to a wagering game employing a standard deck of 52 cards, shuffled and then played and dealt in a specific sequence in combination with participating players betting against a dealer or the house that the participating player has a higher card winning hand. It is related to card games that can also be played in non-gambling settings.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Games of chance employing a deck of 52 cards are as old as the invention of cards themselves. The concept of using high cards in which to play and wager in card games is also old. Even so, the prior art discloses many novel patented card gaming tables and many novel patented card games to be played on them.
Card games generally employ one or more cards which, when dealt upon a horizontal surface, determine a score based upon indicia displayed by the upwardly facing sides or faces of the resting cards when the cards are turned face up.
Feola in U.S. Pat. No. 5,839,731 which issued on Nov. 24, 1998 describes a novel casino game based on a selected card game in which a player wagers on one or more of a group of dealt hands, i.e. a random grouping, pile, or pot of cards, and where the chances of winning are not enhanced by the skills of the player and no discretion in the selection of cards is vested in either the player or dealer. A relatively complex card game, such as blackjack, baccarat, or stud poker, is selected. A number of hands are dealt as lines or arrays on a playing surface and players wager as to which hand will win. The playing surface has a dealer position including a line or array for each hand dealt to the dealer. Player positions are located in a semicircle around the dealer position, each including a location at which wagers are placed. Winning wagers are paid a multiple of the wager. Optionally, the multiple is based on the odds of obtaining the particular winning combination.
In Somma et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 5,690,337 which issued Nov. 25, 1997 a relatively complex casino card game is disclosed. Utilized is a single, 41-card deck of playing cards consisting of a standard, 4-suit playing card deck from which all "face" cards have been removed and a single "joker" card has been added. Play of the game starts with a first player selecting a card value, termed the "dealer number". No bets can be placed on the dealer number. Players may then place their wager(s) on any of the remaining "live" numbers, and the dealer deals a first playing card, face up. If the identified "dealer number" card value is turned over, all players having placed a bet on any of the "live" numbers win, and are paid off even money. If the card has a value other than the "dealer number", the house wins all bets placed on the "value" number of the card that was turned over, and that value number is thereafter considered "dead". Play continues, with the players given an opportunity to place additional bets on the remaining, "live" card values prior to turning over the next card. If the "joker" card is dealt by the dealer at any time before the "dealer number" has been dealt, the house wins all remaining bets, and the game is over.
Earlier in Boylan et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,607,162 dated Mar. 4, 1997 a method of playing another relatively complex matching wagering game is provided between players and a dealer whose outcome is determined by randomly generated playing cards. After an ante bet is wagered, the dealer deals five cards to each player and deals seven cards to himself. A round of play is then commenced where the dealer plays a card from his hand to present the rank and suit thereof. Next, each player plays a "matching" card from his respective hand which is either the same suit or the same rank. In this manner, each player reduces the number of cards in his hand where a matching card is played during the round. The conducting of a round of play is then repeated until each card in the hand of the dealer has been played. Seven rounds are thus played each game, so that ultimately there are no cards left in the hand of the dealer. The ante bet of each respective player is consequently paid off as follows: (a) To each player if each player has no card remaining; or (b) to the dealer if each player has one or more cards remaining. Preferably, prior to the round of play, each player determines whether his respective hand has a hand rank in poker exceeding three of a kind. If the player does have such a highly ranked hand, the dealer pays off an amount to that player which is a multiple of the ante bet.
Even Earlier in Moody in U.S. Pat. No. 5,489,101 dated Feb. 6, 1996 yet another relatively complex game was patented. The object of this game is for a player to form a five card poker hand that has the highest poker hand ranking. In the house banked version, all players play against the house and not against each other. The game is played with a standard fifty-two card deck. The game consists of a dealer and from one to seven players. Each player makes a bet and a portion of each bet may be allocated to a progressive jackpot. The dealer deals five cards to each player. The dealer then deals six cards as the community cards which are arranged face down in three rows in a triangle pattern on the gaming table layout. The players may discard from none to five unwanted cards. The dealer turns up the community cards and pre-designated groups of cards from the community cards are used for each player to make a complete five card poker hand. The dealer determines the best hand each player has made according to poker hand rankings. All winning hands will be paid by the dealer according to the odds listed in the pay table. When the progressive jackpot payout is used, the dealer examines the six community cards to determine if one of the predetermined card arrangements has occurred. Any winning payoffs from the progressive jackpot are distributed to the players at the table. The method may also be played as a player banked game or as a pot game.
And, on Jan. 23, 1996 Neal was granted U.S. Pat. No. 5,486,005 for yet another complex novel method and apparatus for playing another poker-like game with a deck of fifty-two playing cards wherein each player plays against the dealer. After each player makes a wager, the dealer deals four initial cards of the deck face up to seven separate hands, places odds on each hand according to predetermined guidelines, and selects two of the seven hands as a combination field position. Each player then selects either one of the hands, the field position, or a no-hand winning position which requires that none of the seven hands, after all cards are dealt, have two pairs or better. After each player selects a hand or a position, the dealer deals three more cards of the deck face up to each of the seven separate hands. The dealer then determines the winning hand or position and pays each player who selected the winning hand or position according to the odds and their wager or collects each player3 s wager who did not select the winning hand or position. Additionally, a jackpot wheel may be included to permit an added possibility of winning a larger payout.
In the midst of the prior decade, U.S. Pat. No. 5,395,120 was granted to Malek in March of 1995 for another relatively complex poker-like card game, in particular, a card game suitable for use in casinos, and for a specifically designed table for playing the game. Specifically, this invention relates to a method of and apparatus for playing a casino game simultaneously against a dealer and against other players. More specifically, this invention relates to a method of and an apparatus for playing a mixture of draw poker and one of twenty-one and baccarat wherein a player can simultaneously play Draw Poker against a dealer and one of Twenty-one and Baccarat against other players.
Virtually all casinos, especially those in the gaming capitals of the world, have board games that are played for gambling purposes. Due to the complexity involved in playing the popular wagering games employing cards such as poker, blackjack, and baccarat, for example, as exemplified by the brief summaries given above, there is a need for a simpler game of chance that will appease all strata of expertise in the art of card gambling, yet remain challenging and enjoyable.
U.S. Design Pat. No. 263,975, issued to John S. Quiroga, et al. on Apr. 20, 1982, discloses an ornamental design for a gaming table. By contrast the instant invention is not directed to any sort of ornamental appearance of a game table although playing considerations dictate certain broad geometric relationships between the various play areas on the table. In addition, the required geometric relationships of the instant invention, the novel game and table, are far removed in appearance and function from the black-jack-type table of Ouiroga, et al.
As evinced above, the game of poker is an extremely popular game currently found in most Las Vegas casinos, the rules of which are widely published and have numerous variations. This game provides numerous betting options, but the game involves complicated increasing or decreasing odds depending on the number of decks of cards used. Winning hands may include two pairs, three of a kind, four of a kind, and straights. The novel game presented here is significantly distinct from poker. This makes the novel game attractive to those who enjoy card games but are uncomfortable with the rules of poker and the like.
3. Objects of the Invention
The complexity of the novel game over the prior art games is substantially diminished or eliminated and the novel method enables the game to move quickly thereby decreasing the associated operational overhead. An advantage of the novel 52 card pot card game invention as with the great advantage with roulette, which leads to its popularity, is its simplicity and accessibility to the ever-increasing numbers of novice gamblers. Therefore, despite the popularity of both craps and roulette, the novel game presents several disadvantages to the casinos and players alike. Although there have been attempts to improve upon existing games and to develop new games of chance, none of the prior art games have been able to overcome the complexity disadvantages described herein. Thus, a need exists for a wagering game employing a standard deck of cards that is intended to be played in gambling casinos, that is simple to learn and play, and that results in more wagering decisions per hour and increased revenues for the casino.
For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for simplicity of betting wherein a winning bet is easily recognized. It would be a benefit, therefore, to have a card game allowing players to compete against the house with virtually even odds based on a variations of high card wins, like cards draw or push, and players' deuces and aces provide an advantage to the player.
The gaming method disclosed is designed to quickly build excitement and anticipation with only two successive turnovers of top cards per game, and as such is intended as a quick paced and an unusually exciting game to play and/or observe. Even more particularly, the instant invention is intended to give a novel and new look and feel to the currently popular card games, yet have simplified rules and procedures designed both to encourage use by novice gamblers and to increase the betting decisions per hour to maximize casino profit.